State Convention is where we make grassroots decisions about leadership, budget, and program at the state level. Local Leagues share successful programs; members discuss new ideas, lobby for League priorities, and hear from inspirational speakers.

Facilitated by Lori Dawson who will hold a caucus at LWVNYS Convention to gain support for and answer questions about an upcoming Concurrence on Voter Representation/Election Process that will be introduced at LWV National convention in 2020.

On Thursday, July 4, at the Saratoga National Historical Park, twenty new citizens will pledge their allegiance to the United States of America. The public is invited to attend and the new citizens and their families arrive by 9 a.m.

The hour-long ceremony starts at 10 a.m. with a welcome by Amy Bracewell, Superintendent of the Park, and a musket salute. Near the end of the program all present join in a (lemonade) toast to the Declaration of Independence. It is a very happy event for all.

A table is provided for the volunteers from the LWV of Saratoga County to display materials about voting. When asked we help new citizens or others with filling out voter registration forms and other voting concerns. Volunteers need to be at the park by 8:30 a.m. Please let Helen Crawshaw know 518-584-2636 if you would like to help at the table the morning of July 4.

To prepare volunteers for registering voters on National Voter Registration Day (Sept. 24), the League of Women Voters of Saratoga County is offering two training sessions for volunteers. Both will take place on Tuesday, September 17th at the Saratoga Springs United Methodist Church at 175 5th Ave., Saratoga Springs. In order to make training as convenient as possible, the first session will be held at 2 pm, and the second at 7 pm. Please contact us if you are interested in volunteering.

To prepare volunteers for registering voters on National Voter Registration Day (Sept. 24), the League of Women Voters of Saratoga County is offering two training sessions for volunteers. Both will take place on Tuesday, September 17th at the Saratoga Springs United Methodist Church at 175 5th Ave., Saratoga Springs. In order to make training as convenient as possible, the first session will be held at 2 pm, and the second at 7 pm. Please contact us if you are interested in volunteering.

National Voter Registration Day is celebrated on the fourth Tuesday of every September to focus attention on the importance of registering to vote. The League of Women Voters of Saratoga County has participated in this effort since 2012. We expect to staff in excess of 23 venues around Saratoga County and beyond on National Voter Registration Day, meeting, greeting and registering new voters.

Jackie McConnell, career journalist, will point us toward credible sources and help us evaluate news and news sources. After studying journalism at NYU and applied anthropology at Columbia, Jackie worked at the Time-Life news desk, at a community weekly newspaper and in business journalism.

We have invited two Supervisors to talk about their role as representatives of their locality and the way that our county government operates, including the committee process, agenda setting, weighted voting. We’ll hear how the Observer Corps operates and furthers transparency in government. Terry Lowenthal is leading this program and reports that Supervisors Tara Gaston and Matt Veitch have accepted our invitation. Come with your questions.

The League of Women Voters, Sustainable Saratoga & Skidmore College Sustainability Office present Flourishing in the Age of Climate Change - Finding the Heart of Sustainability. Our speaker will be Bill Throop, Professor of Philosophy and Environmental Studies at Green Mountain College. Flyer

This third program in our Democracy Series is modeled after TED Talks. Selected ‘talkers’ from the community will present their perspectives on various aspects of making democracy work. A fun night when our neighbors will educate us about what's at stake if we don’t pay attention.

Facilitated by former Saratogian editor, Barbara Lombardo, who now teaches journalism at the University at Albany. Free admission, open to the public. Doors open at 6:30pm. Students welcome. Food and beverages available from the Caffe menu.

Join us for breakfast with Carrie Chapman Catt (portrayed by Linda McKenney).

“The League of Women Voters is an effort to make into a workingreality those dreams of a free American … that democracy is somethingworth giving a life-time to obtain, that they will not rest until there is anAll-American democracy which lives up to its own boasts.” —Carrie Chapman Catt

The first part of this Meetup will focus on the Legislative priorities we want to talk about with our representatives in Albany and the way we will organize ourselves to get our messages across. The second part will focus on the newly developed lesson plans about civics education and on strategies we can use to inform teachers of their existence, as well as ways we might use the plans with adult groups. Facilitators: Ann Kril, Barb Thomas and Margie Van Meter

Meet the Candidates night. All candidates on the ballot for Ballston Spa Village Trustee are invited. The event will be held at the VFW Post 358 at 68 E North St, Ballston Spa NY 12020 and will be open to all members of the public and the media.

Save the date. The League recently became a coalition partner with New York Counts 2020. New York Counts 2020 is a broad-based, statewide coalition composed of racial, ethnic, immigrant, religious, health, education, labor, housing, social services, and business groups working in partnership with state and local gov-ernment officials. Their aim is to ensure that New Yorkers across the state - particularly marginalized communities in hard-to-count districts - can fully maximize their participation in the 2020 Census.

On March 5th they will hold a lobby day in Albany in support of funding for educational efforts surrounding the census question. You can learn more about New York Counts 2020. www.newyorcounts2020.org/.

This second in our Making Democracy Work series will be a panel discussion. A panel of three women representing business, advocacy, and politics will discuss their experiences, including challenges, growth, overcoming adversity and finding their inner strength or resilience.

Bob Turner, Associate Professor of Political Science at Skidmore College will present the political and partisan implications of the district system; examining the issue of reforming the electoral college.

We are collaborating with Sustainable Saratoga on this topic. We’ll discuss what we can do as individuals and as an organization to encourage businesses, schools, faith communities and governments to help reverse global warming. We encourage members to check out: www.drawdown.org.

Dr. Stephen Danna will be the facilitator. Dr. Danna is Dean of the SUNY Plattsburgh at the Queensbury Branch Campus.